Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (ONCY) stock prices were down by a marginal 2.24% shortly after market trading commenced on August 9th 2021, bringing the price per share down to USD$2.19 early on in the trading day.
AWARE-1 Study
The second quarter of 2021 saw ONCY stock achieve the primary endpoint for its AWARE-1 study, as demonstrated by data from the first two cohorts of twenty patients with HR+/HER2- early-stage breast cancer patients. The first cohort was treated with pelareorep and letrozole without Tecentriq, the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab, while the second cohort was treated with the triple-combination.
Promising Results
The findings demonstrated how the treatments upregulated tumor PD-L1 expression. This, in turn, induces the generation and expansion of T cell clones, promotes tumor infiltration of CD8+ T cells, and increased CelTIL score, which measures tumor cellularity and inflammation that is significantly correlated with event-free and overall survival. The promising effects were further enhanced when combined with atezolizumab, thereby showing the combined treatment working synergistically to generate an anti-cancer immune response in the tumor and peripheral blood.
ONCY Stock’s Consolidated Success
Notably, the second cohort achieved pre-set success criteria for the study’s primary endpoint, with 60% of the 10 total patients enrolled exhibiting a minimum 30% incr3ease in CelTIL score following the treatment. The data successfully supports the results of the successful results from ONCY stock’s prior Phase 2 trial of IND-213, which demonstrated a statistically significant increase in overall survival with pelareorep treatment by an astounding factor of 2.
ONCY Stock Financials
ONCY stock reported a net loss of USD$7.2 million for the second quarter of fiscal 2021, up from the USD$6.8 million net loss reported in the prior year quarter. Net loss per share come out to USD$0.13 for both basic and diluted share for the second quarter of 2021. This is comparable to the USD$0.17 net loss per basic and diluted share in Q2 2020. The company reported a strong liquidity position as of June 30th 2021, with USD$50.8 million in cash and cash equivalents.
Future Outlook for ONCY Stock
Armed with the promising success of its AWARE-1 study, ONCY stock is poised to capitalize on the momentum generated to see the treatment being developed through to commercialization. The company is keen to execute the accelerated commercialization and eventual proliferation of the treatment. Current and potential investors are hopeful that management will be able to leverage the resources at their disposal to facilitate significant and sustained increases in shareholder value.
